“Twyla.” Cyrus’s surprise was given away by his raised brows. “What are you doing here exactly?” His eyes narrowed as he watched the princess shift uncomfortably on her feet. After what happened before, I was shocked she would dare come here.
“Shalim.” Twyla whispered, her eyes closing briefly. “I came to apologize, Cyrus.” His mouth hardened as he walked closer. “Is that so? And what,exactly,are you sorry for, Sister?”
Cyrus came to stop in front of her, and Twyla looked up at him, gulping at whatever she saw in his eyes. I knew his moods all too well, and I was positive lightning would be crackling in his eyes, warning anyone who looked that he was on the edge of losing it.
“I shouldn’t have helped Daneiris. She threatened to—” Twyla trailed off, swallowing hard, like she was having trouble getting the words out. “It doesn’t matter, I should have fought harder against helping her.”
“Yes, you should have.” Cyrus agreed. “Apologize to Asteria as well, and I will consider the matter over. Don’t, and be prepared for the consequences, Sister.” Twyla’s eyes widened, and mine followed suit. Apologize tome? A royal Fae apologize to a human slave? Cyrus never apologized to me for anything. Why would he…oh. This was about humiliating her. Belittling her by making her apologize to someone so beneath her.
Twyla surely knew his intent, and she tilted her head back, looking to the ceiling like the gods might tell her what to do. When she pulled her head back, she looked right at me. Her lips pursed and she opened her mouth several times, the words struggling to roll off her tongue.
“I apologize, Asteria.” She said finally. “I’m very sorry for what I did, and I hope I didn’t cause you any unnecessary harm.”
Unnecessary harm? Was that supposed to be different thannecessaryharm? This family, by the Old Gods.
“Thank you, Princess.” I nodded, taking the path of least resistance instead of screaming at her and Cyrus both all the things she and her family should really be apologizing for.
“Good, thank you, Sister.” Cyrus clapped his hands together. “Of course, due to the harm caused, it only seems fair you owe me a favor now, to be collected in the future.” He smirked at Princess Twyla, who looked like she wanted to run out of the room as fast as possible. She nodded in agreement, looking defeated.
“Now, get out.” Cyrus rumbled, smiling widely.
The princess wasted no time, running out as Cyrus came up to me, looking over his supposedconcubine. His gaze made me incredibly uncomfortable, but I forced myself to stand still.
“You look beautiful, my dear.” Cyrus praised, his hand coming up and cupping my cheek. “You better behave today. I won’t have anything go wrong in public, understand? I already have my hands full with Zerlina, I won’t accept anything but obedience from you.”
I swallowed back all the things I wanted to say. Soon this would all be in the past. I repeated that thought over and over in my head.
“Of course, Cyrus.” I cooed, giving him a sickeningly sweet smile. He narrowed his eyes at me but nodded before leaving to go get ready himself.
It unfortunately didn’t take long, and Cyrus ushered me out to head into the city. We walked down to the grand staircase, which never failed to creep me out a bit. All the black on black and murky lighting looked like I imagined the entrance to Tartarus must, but it definitely seemed to fit the Tynan’s.
Princess Zerlina met Cyrus on the landing of the stairs, taking his arm with a smile as we made our way to the carriages. Luckily for me, since the princess was here, I wouldn’t have to ride in the carriage with him. It would be unseemly for their slaves to join them, after all. Cyrus ignored this before, but he wouldn’t in present company.
Princess Zerlina’s human joined me in a carriage several down from Cyrus’s. The second and third carriages were taken up by Zerlina’s ladies in waiting, and a few of Cyrus’s people. Lord Visita spotted me and winked, and though I rolled my eyes, he was undaunted and smiled widely until his wife, Nisha, grabbed his attention. They were joined by Lord Arrats and Lady Luna, who followed them into the carriage.
We made our way through the streets of the capital, the gray buildings inspiring absolutely nothing. I stared forlornly at them as they passed by. Everything here was so bland and colorless, not at all like I once imagined a large city full of Fae magic wouldbe. I wondered if any of the other cities in Celesterra were like I once imagined. Maybe they weren’t, maybe the only real beauty to be found was in my dreams. I would envision shining palaces with dancing lights in the skies, all sorts of colors covering the cities thanks to buildings, flowers, shops, and people alike, magic at use everywhere you looked. Evenfall was nothing like that, in fact, one could almost mistake it for a purely human city—if the pointed ears and slightly elongated canines of the Fae weren’t noticed.
Thinking of my dreams, I thought back to the dream I’d had last night. I had joined Luna in the sky, floating among the stars and dancing, and I’d soaked it all in—the peace and freedom it offered. But the darkness had appeared again, reaching for me, desperate to claim me. I didn’t understand what had happened to make the darkness now seem so tangible, in a way it had never been before. Or why when I was there, I yearned for its embrace just as fiercely, my hands glowing like starlight as I tried to cross the divide between us.
The carriage came to a stop, and I jolted out of my reverie. Stepping out with the help of the footman, I looked around the square. People were lining the streets, stopping to get a look at the Crown Prince of Dusk and his betrothed. A mixture of Fae and humans surrounded us, though the majority were Fae. Cyrus and Princess Zerlina certainly looked like a beautiful couple as they stepped out and waved to the people. Princess Zerlina dressed in her house’s colors, a deep red sheath with charcoal embroidery, while Cyrus was wearing a deep blue.
The two began their progress, going into some of the more upscale establishments and meeting people along the way. The rest of us followed behind them, nothing but decoration really. Cyrus wanted to check on his investments, so he made a point of visiting the gambling dens and brothel he owned. He left Zerlinawith her ladies as he did so, and her face when she realized where he was going and why was priceless.
Zerlina huffed and moved along to another dress shop while she waited. I lingered outside with the other humans and about half the guards. The others went in with her, but the shops could only fit so many at a time. I was shocked out of the boredom of waiting by the blaring sound of an alarm. My head snapped up, looking around wildly.
The guards looked at one another, and half of them ran off toward the action, leaving a few behind as screams began sounding from streets away. I shifted on my feet as a roar sounded above us, freezing me in place. My blood heated, raging through me as I felt a throbbing within my chest. I was shrouded in the shadow of a beast as it flew overhead, the screams around me nothing but dull noise, unable to look away as shimmering black scales that reminded me of looking into the night sky consumed my vision, splashes of purple like the aurora across the sky.
The dragon could mean only one thing, and as it passed overhead, I sagged against the wall. Feeling I was released from a spell as my body practically vibrated. The guards were now on high alert as we waited, knowing we were in the eye of the storm. When the door to the shop flew open, we all collectively jumped—even the well-trained guards on edge. Princess Zerlina stood in the doorframe, eyeing the street as the guards sighed in relief.
“What is going on?” Zerlina demanded, the guards looking to one another.
“Princess,” A fair haired guard began. “The kingdom is under attack. It’s Night Kingdom. You should shelter in the shop; they won’t expect you there. We can’t risk them finding you.” He gulped but his eyes hardened nonetheless as he grasped the hilt of his sword. “They would take pleasure in killing the Princessof Dawn, the one-day Queen of Dusk. It would be a significant blow.”
Zerlina nodded, but I noticed a bit of fear now swam in her eyes. “Of course. You’ll come inside with me. I’m sure the humans will be fine out here.” Zerlina sniffed, her upturned nose scanning over me briefly before she turned to her own human. “Except you, you come with me.” The dark-skinned man nodded silently and moved to join her inside.
The guard hesitated, “Princess, Prince Cyrus will not be pleased if something were to happen to Asteria.” I jolted; not aware they even knew my name.
“I am to be his wife.” Zerlina glared. “He will be much more upset if something were to happen to me.”
